Secondarily, social gaming is growing stronger, and by 2018, it’s expected that 53% of social network users will be active social gamers. This massive audience pool, coupled with Facebook’s vast targeting options, have enabled advertisers to identify audiences based on high Lifetime Value (LTV) and acquire them at competitive costs.

Kenshoo is seeing trends in the global gaming market with User Acquisition teams bringing their efforts in house and running their paid social user acquisition program to hit strict cost per install (CPI) and cost per acquisition (CPA) targets. Several factors are contributing to this trend:

Automated workflow and optimization tools provide gaming marketers an easy and cost effective way to run programs in house

Outsourcing User Acquisition programs hinder gaming marketers from fully leveraging their own data to most effectively acquire and re-engage users

Gaming advertisers should be thinking of optimizing towards high LTV customers even as they launch their paid search and social programs. In order to reach these desirable and relevant customers, marketers should focus less on targeting keywords or likes/interests and instead shift thinking toward targeting high-value individuals as they move across channels and devices and demonstrate intent.

Many marketers in the gaming space have initial goals of reaching new audiences and lowering acquisition costs, both of which the Kenshoo platform is designed to support. As we collaborate with marketers on best practices and innovative targeting and creative strategies, we can provide a better understanding of the value that certain cohorts of users bring, allowing for a clearer view of LTV and better tools for optimization.